A J Summers writes steamy contemporary romance with a few very clear lanes: silver-fox billionaire romances, hockey romance, dark bratva romance, and a couple of small connected contemporary series. This is not a catalog that needs one strict universal reading order. The useful rule is simpler: read each series in order, and pick your starting lane based on trope.
For most readers, there are three obvious entry points. Start with The Pucking Fake Boyfriend if you want hockey romance, Ruthless Mafia King if you want dark mafia romance, or Doctor Next Door if you want small-town contemporary romance.
Affiliate Disclosure
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This article may contain affiliate links. If you click one of these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
The best place to start
- If you want the cleanest all-purpose starting point, begin with The Pucking Fake Boyfriend. It opens A J Summers’s first hockey series and gives you the tone that now carries into the later hockey books.
- If you want the strongest dark-romance lane, begin with Ruthless Mafia King. That starts the bratva shelf and is one of the author’s most visible series openers.
- If you want something lighter and more grounded, begin with Doctor Next Door. It opens the short Seaside Lane series and is an easy entry if mafia and hockey are not your first choice.
Recommended reading approach
This is the most practical way to read A J Summers:
- Pick one shelf.
- Read that shelf straight through.
- Move to another shelf only after finishing the current series.
That matters most for the newer hockey and bratva books, where the series branding is clear and the internal order is meant to be followed.
Hockey romance books in order
The Ice Kings
- The Pucking Fake Boyfriend (2024): An enemies-to-lovers, brother’s-best-friend hockey romance that works as the first clean entry into A J Summers’s sports-romance side.
- The Pucking Bad Boy (2024): A secret-baby hockey romance that keeps the same spicy, high-drama sports-romance tone.
- The Pucking Grump (2024): A fake-dating hockey romance that leans harder into the grumpy-hero side of the lineup.
- The Pucking Fake Marriage (2024): A marriage-of-convenience hockey romance that closes the first hockey quartet.
Defenders Diaries
This is the later hockey line, and it should be read in exact order.
- The Pucking Player (2025): A coach’s-daughter hockey romance that opens the newer series and sets the team-world foundation.
- The Pucking Arrangement (2025): A brother’s-teammate, single-dad hockey romance that continues the same connected sports world.
- The Pucking Date (2025): A surprise-pregnancy hockey romance that keeps the Defenders Diaries thread moving.
- The Pucking Clause (2025): A fake-fiancé holiday hockey romance that still belongs in the main sequence rather than outside it.
- The Pucking Comeback (2025): A brother’s-best-friend hockey romance that works best once the earlier team dynamics are already in place.
- The Pucking Bet (2026): A fake-dating college hockey romance and the current endpoint of the series.
Dark mafia books in order
New York Bratva
This is the clearest dark-romance shelf in the catalog and one of the best starting lanes if you prefer possessive heroes and organized-crime stakes.
- Ruthless Mafia King (2024): A dark bratva arranged-marriage opener and the natural place to start the series.
- Mafia King’s Bride (2024): Another arranged-marriage bratva romance that deepens the family-and-power setup.
- Mafia Prince’s Secret Baby (2025): A second-chance secret-baby romance that expands the series beyond the first pairings.
- Mafia King’s Ruthless Obsession (2025): A forced-proximity bratva romance that pushes the series darker and more obsessive.
- Mafia King’s Broken Vow (2025): The current endpoint of the series, built around loyalty, betrayal, and impossible promises.
Small-town and contemporary series in order
Seaside Lane
- Doctor Next Door (2024): A small-town enemies-to-lovers romance and the easiest non-mafia, non-hockey starting point.
- Nanny for Doctor Silver Fox (2024): A single-dad, nanny romance that continues the same world with a more caretaking setup.
Against the Rules Boston Duet
- Accidental Daddy (2023): An enemies-to-lovers surprise-pregnancy romance that opens this short Boston duet.
- The Silver Fox Daddy (2023): A brother’s-best-friend romance that closes the duet and fits the author’s recurring silver-fox lane.
Early silver-fox and billionaire books
These books are useful if you want A J Summers’s earlier contemporary style before the bigger hockey and bratva runs.
Big Apple Billionaire Daddies
- Grumpy Single Daddy (2023): An age-gap, enemies-to-lovers romance that starts the billionaire-daddy mini-series.
- Off Limits Silver Fox (2023): A forbidden age-gap romance that continues the same silver-fox setup.
- Surprise Baby for My Enemy Billionaire (2023): An enemies-to-lovers billionaire romance that closes the three-book set.
Other early standalones
- Bossy Silver Fox (2023): A surprise-pregnancy contemporary romance that fits the same older-hero, high-chemistry lane as the early series books.
- Baby for the Single Dad (2023): A billionaire age-gap romance that works well for readers who want a standalone first.
- Ex-SEAL Billionaire (2024): A fake-relationship romance with a more military-hero edge.
- Twins for Doctor Bad Boy (2024): A brother’s-best-friend romance that sits comfortably beside the doctor and silver-fox books.
- Wicked Boss (2024): A short enemies-to-lovers novella and a minor extra rather than a key starting point.
Publication order
If you want the broad publication path across the main catalog, this is the cleanest version.
2023
- Grumpy Single Daddy (2023): The earliest clearly listed A J Summers title in the current catalog.
- Bossy Silver Fox (2023): Continues the early silver-fox contemporary lane.
- Baby for the Single Dad (2023): Another early age-gap contemporary romance.
- Accidental Daddy (2023): Opens the Boston duet.
- The Silver Fox Daddy (2023): Closes the duet.
- Off Limits Silver Fox (2023): Continues the billionaire-daddy lane.
- Surprise Baby for My Enemy Billionaire (2023): Finishes that three-book set.
2024
- Ex-SEAL Billionaire (2024): A standalone contemporary romance with a fake-relationship setup.
- Doctor Next Door (2024): Opens Seaside Lane.
- Nanny for Doctor Silver Fox (2024): Seaside Lane book two.
- Twins for Doctor Bad Boy (2024): A contemporary standalone in the same general romance lane.
- The Pucking Fake Boyfriend (2024): Opens The Ice Kings.
- The Pucking Bad Boy (2024): Ice Kings book two.
- The Pucking Grump (2024): Ice Kings book three.
- The Pucking Fake Marriage (2024): Ice Kings book four.
- Ruthless Mafia King (2024): Opens New York Bratva.
- Mafia King’s Bride (2024): New York Bratva book two.
- Wicked Boss (2024): A short novella extra.
2025
- Mafia Prince’s Secret Baby (2025): New York Bratva book three.
- Mafia King’s Ruthless Obsession (2025): New York Bratva book four.
- Mafia King’s Broken Vow (2025): New York Bratva book five.
- The Pucking Player (2025): Opens Defenders Diaries.
- The Pucking Arrangement (2025): Defenders Diaries book two.
- The Pucking Date (2025): Defenders Diaries book three.
- The Pucking Clause (2025): Defenders Diaries book four.
- The Pucking Comeback (2025): Defenders Diaries book five.
2026
- The Pucking Bet (2026): Defenders Diaries book six and the latest confirmed release I found.
Do you need one master reading order?
No. A J Summers is better read by trope shelf than by one global sequence.
The hockey books form one path. The bratva books form another. The silver-fox and small-town books give you a separate contemporary path. Most readers will have a better experience choosing one of those lanes instead of trying to read everything by date.
Best starting books by taste
- For hockey romance, start with The Pucking Fake Boyfriend.
- For dark bratva romance, start with Ruthless Mafia King.
- For small-town contemporary romance, start with Doctor Next Door.
- For silver-fox billionaire romance, start with Grumpy Single Daddy.
- For the newer connected hockey series, start with The Pucking Player after finishing The Ice Kings.
Latest release status
The latest confirmed A J Summers book I found is The Pucking Bet, released in March 2026. No, upcoming releases so far.
FAQs
What is the first A J Summers book?
The earliest clearly listed book in the current catalog is Grumpy Single Daddy (2023).
What is the best A J Summers series to start with?
For most readers, The Ice Kings is the best starting point because it is compact, easy to follow, and leads naturally into the later hockey books.
What is A J Summers’s darkest series?
New York Bratva is the darkest and most openly mafia-centered lane in the catalog.
What is the newest A J Summers book?
The newest confirmed release I found is The Pucking Bet (2026).
Should I read The Ice Kings before Defenders Diaries?
Yes, that is the cleaner hockey path. They are separate series, but reading the earlier hockey quartet first makes the overall sports-romance shelf easier to follow.
Final recommendation
If you want one clear answer, do this:
- The Pucking Fake Boyfriend
- The Pucking Bad Boy
- The Pucking Grump
- The Pucking Fake Marriage
- The Pucking Player
- Continue Defenders Diaries in order
That gives you the cleanest route through A J Summers’s strongest hockey shelf first, while leaving the bratva and contemporary books for later depending on your mood.
Frank is the editor of BookSeries.blog, focusing on publication order, chronological timelines, and spoiler-free reading guides for book series and fictional universes.